For the greater security and satisfaction of the people, Nuno gave orders that the Mahometans should enjoy the free exercise of their religion, and that the laws and regulations established by Badur for the government of the city and its dependencies should continue to be executed, even continuing all the salaries and pensions granted by the late king.  Among these was a Moor of Bengal who, by authentic information was 320 years old[206].  This man had two sons, one ninety and the other only twelve years of age.  He appeared to be only about sixty, and it was said that his beard and teeth had fallen and been renewed four or five times.  He was rather under the middle size, and neither fat nor lean.  He pretended that before he was an hundred years old, while herding cattle on the banks of a river, there appeared a man to him clothed in a gray habit and girt with a cord, having wounds on his hands and feet, who requested to be carried by him across the river on his shoulders; which having done, this person said that as a reward for his charity, he should retain all his faculties till he saw him again.  Going accordingly into one of the Portuguese churches in India, this old man exclaimed on seeing the image of St Francis, This is he whom I carried across the river so many years ago.

[Footnote 206:  Perhaps an error of the press for 120.—­E.]

Mir Mahomet Zaman, a descendant of the ancient kings of Guzerat, on learning the death of Badur, went to condole with the queen-mother at Novanaguer; but she, fearing he came to rob her, refused to see him and even endeavoured to remove to another place.  Offended at her suspicions, Mahomet Zaman lay in wait for her with 2000 horse, and robbed her of all her riches, amounting to above two millions of gold.  He then raised above 5000 horse, with which he seized Novanaguer, and had himself proclaimed king of Guzerat.  He then sent a messenger to Nuno de Cuna, giving an account of the posture of his affairs and of his title to the crown, desiring his assistance, in requital for which he offered to cede to the Portuguese all the coast from Mangalore to Beth[207], including the towns of Daman and Basseen with the royal country house of Novanaguer, and other advantages.  Nuno accepted these offers, caused him to be proclaimed king in the mosque of Diu, and urged him to raise forces and disperse the other pretenders.  Fearing that this advice was only given to deceive, Zaman procrastinated and took no effectual steps to secure the crown to which he aspired, of which misconduct he soon experienced the evil consequences; as the principal people of Guzerat set Mahomet Khan, a nephew of the deceased Badur on the Musnud, and made preparations to subdue Zaman.  As Nuno was under the necessity of leaving Diu early in 1538 to attend to the other affairs of his extensive government, the Guzerat nobles in the interest of Mahomet raised sixty thousand men, with which they marched against Zaman; and having